First off, I do agree that the States need to change more than just their impact on the planet. If we don't change our impact on the planet, however, there may not be a USofA to change in a hundred years' time.

Let me convince you with SCIENCE, dear Raurg.

This is a graph of CO2's (that's carbon dioxide; a greenhouse gas that is primarily emitted through the burning of fossil fuels) presence in the atmosphere. It is measured in Particles Per Million (PPM). Notice how we've hit the 350 PPM mark and are rapidly accelerating upwards.

Some climatologists (yeah, that's a real job) believe that 400 PPM is the point of no return, so to speak. These dudes claim that past 400 PPM atmospheric CO2 we will see some serious climate change -- by serious I mean increased global temperatures of only a few degrees Celsius. These few degrees, however, would be enough to warm the oceans significantly, melting the polar icecaps, and thus raising ocean levels by a lot.

Do you know what that means?

NO MORE DISNEYLAND! D:

Seriously, though, heightened ocean levels are just the beginning of it; there are TONS of other changes that could occur past that. Massive climate changes are not only a very real possibility; if we don't change things soon it will be a very real PROBLEM.

Now check out THIS graph:Do you see that big fucking spike at the end of the graph? We did that. LAWD knows what's gonna happen with a spike in CO2 like that.

Another graph:Here you can see how global temperature and CO2 content go hand-in-hand with one another.

There was a graph in my AP Environmental Science textbook last year that showed how the last time atmospheric CO2 exceeded 400 PPM was the most recent mass-extinction on the planet. Unfortunately I could not find that graph, but just think about it. This shit is real, man. We're heading down a long, painful, and rather embarrassing road to extinction; we don't have long to turn around, either. :S

I unfortunately don't have the time at the moment to post an actual argument, but this article explains my view probably clearer than I could.I got a four on the one AP test I took this past year. A four is good Luke, unless you meant you were pleasantly surprised.

I'm all 'bout that 5 life. I pulled a 5 on APUSH and AP Lang; bitch-graders for APES gave me a 4.

Haha, I read this article.. and it's cute and all, but come on, man. This is some bad reporting on a infrequently criticized scientific belief. Take note that the article doesn't say anything about man-made climate change not being believed by 'some 400 scientists'; rather, the article states that these scientists, "criticized the climate claims made by the UN IPCC and former Vice President Al Gore."

That's two people's statements on climate change claims. That's this article's thesis. They're reporting on a group of people disagreeing with political figures; the TITLE, however, misleads you into thinking that the article is about a group of people disagreeing with man-made climate change. Bad reporting.

Haha, this part made me laugh: "Many of the scientists featured in this report consistently stated that numerous colleagues shared their views, but they will not speak out publicly for fear of retribution."

Like... this is the scientific community they're talking about... there are a lot of differing opinions on untested topics within the scientific community; that's kind of how science works. And then these scientists in "this report" are saying, "oh yeah, I have friends who agree with me; they're just too scared to say it publicly." That really only makes these 400 scientists sound stupid for talking about a topic that they know makes them sound like fools for disagreeing with.

Put it this way -- if you're gonna agree solely with the beliefs of the scientific community, you should probably agree with the beliefs of the majority since there are a few crazy people in every profession. If I had a graph that showed "scientists that believe in man-made climate change" vs "scientists that do not believe in man-made climate change" I'd show it to you right now. I can tell you, however, that most of these dudes think that humankind has something -- not necessarily everything -- to do with our changing climate conditions.

If anybody would be interested in a topic called "Luke Changes your Mind," I would have fun trying to change people's mind on just about anything, by the way.

Luke, I love how into this you are! I love that last part--Our society is definitely doing SOMETHING to the environment. I do not believe that we are singlehandedly killing it, but I do believe that we are at the very least speeding up the natural temperature cycles that take place over 100,000 years or so. Only time will tell what exactly is going on.

Haha, my APES teacher did an awesome job of brainwashing me last year, I suppose. It's a big deal and it won't go anywhere until we decide to make some changes; the only way to make these changes is to ensure that everybody knows what's up.

My biggest tip for any AP test is to pace yourself. I know a lot of people that still had 10 or more questions left once time was called.. I imagine that it's hard to score a 5 with blank entries on the multiple choice segment.

Make sure you're prepared for your essays as well. I'm naturally good at writing so I had a pretty good idea that AP Lang was gonna be an easy 5 going into the thing. Don't be afraid of writing a short essay while taking plenty of time on your synthesis essay. My third essay wasn't more than a page long and I still pulled a 5.

For APUSH just remember to use all of the outside information that you can possibly think of. Also underline your thesis -- fuck what your teacher says about not doing so.

Okay, thanks. I thought the AP Euro test wasn't too bad. I finished the multiple choice and checked them with about ten minutes left and had about a half hour left after the essays so I figure that should work out well enough this year, for APUSH at least.

^ PREEEEACH. Sandy actually highlighted our outdated infrastructure.. one storm knocked out power for like 8 million people. There's a group of civil engineers who say that lots of bridges will start collapsing within the next decade or so; they're trying to start a movement for a (much-needed) total infrastructure renovation.

Man, I'm really starting to get the feeling that the US is gonna fall the fuck apart pretty soon..

It's been on that road for some years now, Reagan was our last decent president in my opinion. Also, part of the problem is that a lot of people in the younger generations either expect things to be given them or are unable to get anywhere due rising student loans and a smaller job market.

Right, so for whatever reason -- thanks to some prodding from Masta -- I decided to buy a month of mems before the price goes up to $10 a fucking month. Unfortunately, I'm ass broke, and I need some cash. If any of you have money on your unused osrs accounts, I'll gladly take that shit off your hands. I presently have about 7k with which to restart my adventure. I look forward to seeing you guys online.